James Tedesco to join Canberra Raiders for 2015 season
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The Canberra Raiders have pulled off a big coup, signing young Wests Tigers fullback James Tedesco for the next 3 seasons on a $1.9 million deal

Fox Sports

27 May 2014

Sport/NRL/Previews & Reviews

James Tedesco is leaving the Tigers and joining the Raiders next season.Source: News Corp Australia

A ROUND of golf with former teammate Benji Marshall helped Tigers fullback James Tedesco make the painful decision to leave his junior club and sign a three-year deal with Canberra.

Although Canberra’s $1.9 million offer was comfortably in excess of what the Tigers could afford to keep him, Tedesco was still undecided when he teed-up alongside senior stars Marshall, Tim Moltzen and Braith Anasta at St Michaels Golf Club on Monday.

The 22-year-old’s dilemma turned nasty over the weekend, after it was revealed he and Panthers winger Josh Mansour toured Raiders HQ last Thursday.

Tedesco revealed that he was forced to de-activate social media notifications in the face of some confronting advice from Tigers fans.

“They wanted me to stay and they were disappointed when it looked like I might be leaving,” he said.

If only they knew the real story.

When Tedesco received his first offer from the Tigers a few months ago, something did not add up: his 2015 salary was less than his current contract value.

The Tigers hastily reconfigured the numbers, but Tedesco’s agent, Sam Ayoub, felt they still weren’t comparable for a player who was leading the Dally M votes at the time and had scored a try in each of his first four appearances.

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